Chris Pratt has been a topic of controversy amongst some fans these days. After it was revealed his family has ties to a church with apparent homophobic views, with James Gunn later defending him, some fans started to see the Guardians of the Galaxy star in an unfavourable light. Pratt also went to refute those claims himself. Nevertheless, this newfound dislike seemed to continue. This carried over to Chris Pratt being cast in the upcoming Super Mario Bros movie. As the iconic videogame plumber, there had been concerns over the casting of Pratt would mean a lack of Italian representation.
Talking to Deadline, Illumination CEO, Chris Meledandri, attempted to address those worries by commenting on Pratt’s performance.
“When people hear Chris Pratt’s performance, the criticism will evaporate, maybe not entirely — people love to voice opinions, as they should” says Meledandri.
“I’m not sure this is the smartest defense, but as a person who has Italian-American heritage, I feel I can make that decision without worrying about offending Italians or Italian-Americans. … I think we’re going to be just fine.”
It seems like the Illumination head is looking to calm any fears around both this Mario movie and any future Nintendo films, to help cement a continued partnership. Meledandri went on to add “the fulfillment of a really important objective. Nintendo is one of the companies we respect and hold in high esteem; this collaboration I think is unprecedented in its closeness.”
Following a delay announced earlier this year, the Super Mario Bros movie will releasing sometime during Spring 2023. Along with Chris Pratt playing Mario, other casting news told us we’ll be seeing Luigi played by Charlie Cox, Peach by Anya Taylor-Joy, Bowser by Jack Black, Toad by Keegan-Michael Key, and Donkey Kong by Seth Rogen.
To find out more, you can find the original Deadline article linked below.
While you’re here, be sure to check out our video of the week. 10 of the best PlayStation 1 games of all time are shown off. What is your favourite PS1 game?
Featured Image Credit: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures/Nintendo
Source: Deadline